Following Toyota's withdrawal from F1 at the end of the 2009 season, Jarno Trulli was left without a drive for the 2010 season. But with a number of teams still without drivers, Trulli is likely to find employment for a 14th season in F1, and is hotly tipped to join new team Lotus.

Named after motorcycle champion, Jarno Saarinen, Trulli was born in to motorsport fanatics in Pescara. As with many F1 drivers, he started his career in karts, and after winning the Italian and European championships, he moved into German Formula 3, winning the championship in 1996.

In 1997 he made his F1 debut with Italian team Minardi, but after seven races he replaced the injured Olivier Panis at Prost. At the German Grand Prix he scored his first points, with a fourth, and he finished his rookie season with three points. He spent a further two seasons with Prost, and at the 1999 European Grand Prix in Germany he secured his first podium finishing - second behind Johnny Herbert. He ended the season with seven points, his most successful tally with Prost. In 2000, Trulli moved to Jordan, but in his two seasons with the team he failed to make the podium.

Thanks to his manager Flavio Briatore, Trulli secured a move to Renault in 2002, alongside Jenson Button. Despite Button's superior results, it was the Englishman who made way for young test driver Fernando Alonso. Other than three retirements mid-season, Trulli enjoyed a relatively consistent season, and finished the year with 33 points, but compared to Alonso, who notched 55 points, Trulli was shown up by his rookie team-mate.

In 2004, at the Monaco Grand Prix, Trulli secured his first pole, and his first race victory, ahead of former team-mate Button. However, relationships with the constructor had begun to fray, and he was sacked with three races remaining. He was replaced by Jacques Villeneuve but joined Toyota for the final two races of the season.

Early season form in 2005 saw him pick up 26 points from the opening five races, outpacing team-mate Ralf Schumacher. However, he could only manage 12th in the standings. After three podiums early in 2005, Trulli did not return to the podium again until June 2008, when he fought hard to finish third at the French Grand Prix. 2009 proved to be his final season with the Japanese constructors, and he stood on the podium three times, most memorably his second place in front of the Toyota fans in Japan.

Strengths and Weaknesses
After well over a decade in the sport, Trulli has seen pretty much everything the sport can throw at him. His experience at a new team like Lotus would be invaluable, and he is a notoriously strong qualifier. However, he has a reputation for being easy to overtake, and despite occasional impressive results, lacks consistency.

Career High
Taking his maiden race victory at the Monaco Grand Prix in 2004, the most prestigious race on the calendar. By winning in Monaco, Trulli was the only driver to break Michael Schumacher's dominance from March through to August.

Career Low
Being sacked by Renault with three races remaining of the 2004 season. Despite securing his first race victory, Trulli was released after his relationship with team principal and former manager Briatore deteriorated.

Quotes
"I believe F1 puts you under exam conditions every day, every race. Today you might be over the moon. Tomorrow you could be under the floor. The point is to deal with that positively."

"On a single lap, Jarno is always able to do an excellent time. It's important for a team to know fairly quickly where it is on a Saturday. Jarno would give us that." Lotus technical director and former Toyota colleague, Mike Gascoyne

Trivia
In November 2000, just two weeks after the end of the F1 season, Trulli completed the New York Marathon in a time of 4:02.21.